Chinese fans voted between 独行侠 (“Lone Ranger Heroes”), 烈驹 (“Fierce Colts”) and 狂马 (“Wild Horses”)
NBA team Dallas Mavericks will no longer be known as ‘Little Cows’ in China.
According to their website, the Mavericks were known as ‘Little Cows’ in China for almost two decades. Now, with help from Chinese basketball fans, the Mavericks will be known as 独行侠 (DúXíngXiá), which translates to ‘Lone Ranger Heroes’.
An official announcement confirming their new name was made during last night’s Tencent’s live broadcast of the Dallas Mavericks home game against the Golden State Warriors.
The search for the NBA team’s new Chinese name began on 10 September 2017. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban had posted a video on Weibo asking Chinese-speaking fans to submit their ideas for a new Chinese name for the team. The team reportedly worked with Tencent Sports to ensure it reached as many NBA fans in China as possible.
After only two weeks, the Dallas Mavericks received over 50,000 comments from fans suggesting new names. The team narrowed down their search to three names as finalists, 独行侠 (“Lone Ranger Heroes”), 烈驹 (“Fierce Colts”) and 狂马 (“Wild Horses”) .
Fans across China were then asked to vote on which of the three names they preferred. One month later, 100,000 votes were submitted. The new name was announced during halftime in China’s online broadcast of the game, confirming that the Dallas Mavericks will be known as 达拉斯独行侠 (“Dallas Lone Ranger Heroes”) in all Chinese-speaking regions of the world.
“This is the beginning of a new chapter in the Mavericks’ long legacy in China,” said Cuban. “With this Chinese name change, we’ve made history by giving our Chinese-speaking fans the opportunity to redefine our identity. I think that fans will be proud of this new name.”
In 1999, the Dallas Mavericks made history by becoming the first NBA team to sign a Chinese-born player – Wang Zhizhi. CBA star Ding Yanyuhang also played for the Mavericks’ 2017 Summer League teams in Orlando and Las Vegas.